U.S. forces boarded an oil tanker in the Indian Ocean on Tuesday that had been previously sanctioned for smuggling Iranian crude oil, the Department of Defense announced.

The Pentagon said U.S. forces "conducted a right-of-visit maritime interdiction" and boarded the M/T Tifani "without incident." Ship-tracking data showed the vessel was carrying oil between Sri Lanka and Indonesia at the time of the boarding.

The Pentagon described the Tifani as "stateless" despite it being flagged under Botswana. The announcement did not specify the exact location or time of the boarding operation.

The action represents part of broader U.S. enforcement efforts to disrupt what officials describe as illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran. "International waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels," the Pentagon stated.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last week that U.S. blockade operations would extend beyond Iranian waters to include pursuit of Iranian-flagged vessels or any vessel attempting to provide material support to Iran in other areas of responsibility, including the Pacific.

The boarding comes as a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran was set to expire, with Pakistan reportedly attempting to broker talks between Washington and Tehran. Iran's armed forces condemned the incident as "armed piracy" and "blatant aggression," though they indicated restraint due to the presence of crew members' families aboard the vessel.